


A Game For Two

by KikoRush96



Category: World Wrestling Entertainment
Genre: Heartbroken Seth, Jealous Dean, Jealous Seth, Mild Language, Multi, Previous Dean/Seth
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-08-03
Updated: 2018-10-15
Packaged: 2019-06-21 05:58:43
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 6,645
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15551172
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KikoRush96/pseuds/KikoRush96
Summary: Dean and Seth broke upagesago. So it seems to Seth, anyway. A chance meeting with an old friend offers Seth the chance to get back at his ex, but just at what cost.Prompt:Dean Ambrose & Seth Rollins have a really horrible breakup so they try to make each other jealous by dating Renee Young and Cathy Kelley but conflict starts when they start to fall in love with the girls





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [LuckyLucy92](https://archiveofourown.org/users/LuckyLucy92/gifts).



> Hello! Sorry this has taken forEVER, but it was a lot longer than I ever intended it to be, so it's taking longer to write. Hopefully you like it! <3
> 
> Thank you for the request, and I promise the other one is going to be coming at some point. And this one will be finished! I swear. :D

Six months. Six months had passed, and honestly? Seth was totally fine. He was long past the mopey stage, eating gallons of crunchy pecan ice cream (despite never liking it), watching reruns of The Office on TV and ignoring basically everyone in the world. He was finally past the angry stage, where he deleted every picture, wrote cryptic tweets, and swore so much, his neighbors had reported him. He was doing fine lately, going to work with a smile most days, working out again, and generally doing really well.

Sure, it still hurt. Sometimes, a random happy memory would cross his mind, and a longing would come over him to unblock that number and hit dial, but he was strong. He could do it.

"Hey, Sethie. How are you doing this fine day?" He raised his eyes from his phone, where he had been looking up a new band his friend had recommended, to see Sami Zayn, a long-time friend and co-worker of his. He locked his phone and slid it into his pocket, offering his hand for Sami to shake.

"Doing a lot better man. Thanks for everything, by the way. I wouldn't have made it without you." Sami waved him off, shrugging.

"You were kind of pitiful to look at, man. You needed help. Hey, by the way, you're still coming out tonight, right? Gonna get trashed tonight!" Seth had wanted to just go home and eat a nice dinner, maybe watch a movie on Netflix, but when Sami approached him with plans for the night to go out on the town, well, he wasn't one to refuse letting loose.

"You know it! I wouldn't miss Kevin drunkenly singing Katy Perry songs or Tyler running around with his fake police hat, scaring drunk people all night. Plus, I've been wanting to really get out again, you know? Fully enjoy my new bachelor status." Sami's eyes softened at the last bit, nodding in understanding.

"I know it was hard, man, but I'm glad we're officially moving on from that trash bag. He wasn't worth it." Seth smiled, shrugging his shoulders because he knew how much his friends hated his ex, how much they wanted Seth to hate his guts too, but he never could. 

They had been best friends for ages, lovers for a time, and nearly the fairytale he had always dreamed of, but then his ex-boyfriend had gone and posted that picture of some girl hanging on him at a dingy bar, had taken her home and smashed Seth's heart into a million pieces. The resulting fight, with the tears, the screaming, the broken dishes, and finally the slam of the front door, had destroyed him. He had never imagined he'd be in that position, and it hurt to think maybe that was it, that was his one shot at happiness and they'd blown it.

"Yeah, yeah. Anyway, I'll see you tonight. Tell Kev to please leave the wig at home this time." Sami laughed as he walked away, waving lazily before turning the corner and leaving Seth's sight. He knew he'd be fine, that his friends were always there for him, but he still missed his ex sometimes. They'd been so close, so perfect, and he'd been so in love. It was crazy to look back at all the amazing times they had, knowing that they were nothing but pretty lights leading to a ghost town. 


	2. Chapter 2

"Do you think the music is loud enough?" Seth was literally shouting at the ginger, knocking back a strong clear drink in a tiny glass before sipping on a bright orange drink in a large glass. Sami laughed, slamming his glass on the table, the bartender looking highly unamused.

"I think you need to take a few more shots, man! After about four, the music fades away!" Seth cocked a brow at the rosy cheeks and glassy eyes, suddenly wondering if perhaps he should take Sami back to the table with the others, or maybe call him a cab. So far, they had been out at the swanky club, The Double Dice, for about three hours, and Sami had consumed almost triple of what Seth had. The moment he had arrived, raucous cheers greeting him the second he was in sight of the table, Sami had leaped up and dragged him to the bar, not letting him look around or even say hello.

"Sami, what's going on? Something up at home?" When the ginger called for more shots, Seth's eyes bugging out as he held up six fingers to the bartender, he knew something was wrong. Sami was either having an issue or was trying to get them both really drunk. He quickly told the bartender not to get those, dropping some bills on the bar before dragging Sami away from the alcohol. Sami whined and tried to move them back over there, but Seth was stronger, able to easily move them towards the men's room, shoving them inside quickly. His headache began to subside as the pounding music faded.

"Dude, what's going on? You're acting weird, and we never drink this much when we go out. In fact, you hate getting really drunk." Sami shuffled in front of him, not meeting his eyes, and just as he went to interrogate him further, the music from the club blared into the bathroom, Seth turning to see who was coming in. 

Oh.

He felt weightless for a moment, his heart freezing in his chest. The man before him still looked as good, maybe even better actually, as the last time he saw him all those months ago. His beard was trimmed, a ball cap slung over his usually unruly hair, and he was dressed in a nice-fitting black t-shirt and jeans. So casual, yet Seth couldn't stop his heart from slamming against his sternum, demanding to escape the prison he's trapped it in since that night nearly a year ago. He distantly heard someone calling his name in an increasingly desperate tone of voice, but he couldn't stop staring.

His ex just walked into the bathroom, looking like a million dollars. How was he supposed to react?

Seth felt the sting deep down as the man totally ignored them, and while it was possible he didn't realize who it was he'd just passed by, Seth couldn't help but feel hurt all over again. They were so good together. Why was this his life?

"Seth. Please, we need to go. Now." He finally turned to Seth, knowing by the look on Sami's face, that the emotions he was feeling were all over his face. He had a pretty expressive face, which wasn't usually a bad thing, but this time, he wished he could hide how much the man's presence bothered him.

"You knew, didn't you? You knew he was here." They were both talking in hushed voices, hyper-aware of the fact that Seth's ex was no more than a few feet away from them. Sami's guilty expression was all he needed to see before he was trying to escape the bathroom. Unfortunately, luck was never on his side, and the man coming into view before he could get to the door. Blue eyes met his, and suddenly he felt frozen to the spot, waiting with baited breath to see what he would do. 

"Seth. How are you?"

"Dean. Long time no see. I'm, um, I'm good. You?" He hated how formal and robotic he sounded when Dean sounded just fine. In fact, he sounded like a friend meeting a friend again. Then again, it wasn't Dean who had his dreams and heart smashed into pieces right in front of him. Nope, that had been Seth.

"I've been better, to be honest. My date is twenty minutes late, and all my friends are starting to give me the sympathy eyes. I might get royally trashed instead if she doesn't show up in ten more minutes." Seth felt ice in his veins at the mention of not only a date, but a female one, wondering if the jealousy and hurt was all over his face. Dean was extremely perceptive, but a lot of the time he didn't care enough to look close enough. It was so annoying, back when they were together, because Dean could never see when something upset Seth.

Or, maybe, he didn't care if he did hurt Seth's feelings. Dean was kind of like that sometimes.

"Oh, that's too bad. Maybe it's the weather. I heard it was supposed to get rough tonight." Dean's brow arched at him, eyes scanning his frame, before smirking.

"Anything else getting rough tonight, Sethie? You here with anyone? Aside from cabbie over there. Sami." He offered a wave to the man still behind Seth, though he wasn't sure if the gesture was returned, or if Sami had flipped him off. Sami was unpredictable sometimes.

"Although, you have a history of dating friends. Are you guys a thing now?" Seth nearly choked on his own spit at the suggestion, and one look at Dean's face revealed it was totally done on purpose. There was no way they would ever get together.

Mostly because Kevin would absolutely murder him.

"No, Dean. Sami is just a supportive friend. A really drunk supportive friend. And, um, no. I'm not really here with anyone. Just a guy's night out." Dean hummed in understanding, leaning against the wall and observing Seth with those knowing blue eyes. It had to be obvious Seth was a mess, even all this time later, and Dean was probably enjoying it a little. The fact that Seth couldn't get over what they had.

"Too bad. Anyway, I better go. I'm sure she's here by now. I'll see you around." And then he was gone. Seth felt himself collapse, wishing he could just roll into a ball and cry his eyes out. How could he have possibly thought he was moving on? Their relationship was everything to Seth, and it had been ripped away from him so suddenly, there was no chance to even understand what was happening before he was thrust into single life once again.

An arm wrapped around his shoulder, alcohol-drenched breath twisting his stomach more than it already was.

"Sami, please take me home."


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> And in walks....

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this has taken so long, but's it's a pretty decent sized update, so hopefully that makes up for it!!

Three days later, and Seth was no better off than the night at the club. Not only had he dug into his ice cream stash again, he had taken up social media stalking, finally finding out that the girl Dean mentioned was actually someone he knew too. A picture of the two was on her Instagram, him leaning in and her kissing his cheek so sweetly. It made Seth want to throw up.

Her name was Renee Young. She had been a friend of Seth's back in college, as well as Dean's, but they had lost touch after graduation. He wasn't sure how she and Dean had been reconnected, but it hurt somehow more than he actually knew the girl. Probably because he couldn't imagine her as some awful chick who abused Dean or something. Renee was so sweet, and she really cared about Dean from what Seth remembered. They had been an item at the time, so new into the relationship, but he had not been so blind by love to see that the blonde girl was interested in his then boyfriend. His jealousy had just been kept at bay, but he wondered if he should have scared her off.

A knock at the door jolted him from his thoughts, and he wondered who in the world it could be. Sami, though he was so supportive, texted him an hour ago saying he was busy taking care of a very sick Kevin and couldn't come to watch another run through of something on Netflix. Seth slowly rose from his couch and moped over to the door. When he swung it open, he couldn't contain his surprise at who was on the other side.

"Cathy? Wha- what are you doing here?" He watched as surprise washed over her features, her eyes trailing up and down his body before she crashed into him, laughing like he had said the funniest thing ever. 

Cathy Kelly was another person he knew in college, and actually, they had been pretty great friends back then. They had been studying the same thing and had had so many classes together. He remembered that Dean had not been a fan of hers, though at the time Seth had no idea why.

When he remembered Renee's doe eyes and red lips on Dean's cheek, well, maybe he finally got it now.

"Wow! Hi, Seth! I just moved in next door and was going around introducing myself to the neighbors. By the way, you're one of the only ones who actually opened the door. Tough neighborhood." Seth snickered, unable to believe she was here, she was still hugging him excitedly, and that she was moving in next door! Cathy was exactly the person he needed to see right then, and he couldn't believe she was there.

"That's amazing. And yeah, not the most pleasant crew around here. Except for Larry on the third floor, but you should avoid him. He likes to hit on anything with boobs. Once, he hit on a cow while we were all hanging out in the countryside. He was drunk at the time, but we were not even surprised." Cathy laughed, finally pulling away from him and looking around the apartment. Seth suddenly wished he had cleaned up a little, eyeing the boxes of takeout and dirty boxers instantly. When her pretty brown eyes met his again, she looked a little confused.

"Where's Deano? I figured on a Monday night, you guys would be watching the game like back in college, pizza boxes and beer never ending. Oh, I suppose he could be working. It's so weird that we're people who have careers and things like that." Seth felt a pang at the mention of Dean, of the good times they'd had, but he still forced a smile and lead her to his dining room table. She took a seat, looking up at him expectantly.

"Actually, Dean and I aren't together anymore. He doesn't live here either, which I suppose is a good thing. The place is definitely cleaner since he left. Not that you can tell now, but I've been a little... busy. Would you like a drink, or something to eat?" Cathy quietly requested a water, so Seth dutifully went to his fridge and pulled out two bottles of water, grabbing a bag of chips and some leftover hummus he had as he passed the cabinet. When he returned, she was typing away on her phone but looked up when he entered.

"I'm sorry about you and Dean. I never would have imagined you two would have broken up. It seemed so permanent and so perfect." Seth sighed as he dropped into the seat next to her, opening the chips and dipping one into the dip. 

"Yeah, well, you and me both, huh? But it's been, like, six months, so I've mostly moved past it. Hey, want to watch something with me on Netflix? My friend Sami was supposed to come over, but he had someone sick to take care of, so I was just hanging out all by myself." Cathy instantly perked up, nodding excitedly.

"Sounds much better than unpacking all of my boxes right now." Seth grabbed another chip, an idea hitting him.

"Why don't we kill two birds with one stone? Watch Netflix and unpack your boxes! If you don't mind me going there, of course." The pretty brunette nodded, rising from her seat and dragging him out the front door. She wasn't wrong either; she lived literally right beside him. He hadn't even noticed Mister Perkins had moved out.

"Wow, nice place you got here, Cathy! Very classy. I like it." She giggled at him, directing him to where she had the television, which was bigger than his own, and cable box sitting on the ground. It was a really nice smart TV, so he was able to pull up and sign into Netflix rather easily. With something playing, he turned to see what they could tackle. Cathy was bent over a box marked 'Dishes', and next to that was one marked 'Books'. He wandered through the place, already relatively familiar considering hers was nearly an exact copy of his, finally spotting another box simply marked 'Kitchen'. 

An hour later, with so many laughs (as well as drinks and pizza) shared between them, the place was nearly livable. Her kitchen was set up, only missing the food and a couple pieces of silverware, the living room had a pile of books in the corner, apparently her bookshelf getting lost somehow in the move, and her bedroom was all set up, bed made and dresser filled with clothes. As they both sat on her plush burgundy couch, munching on pizza and laughing at some stupid show she'd put on, Seth realized he'd had more fun on a Monday night than he'd had in quite a while.

"I better get going. It's quite late. Thanks for the pizza and drinks, Cath. I'll catch you tomorrow?" She happily took his plate and glass and nodded.

"Of course! And maybe you can give me a tour of the town sometime soon? This place is so big. I don't know where to even begin exploring!" Seth laughed, voice gaining the husky texture it always did when he was really exhausted.

"This weekend I'll introduce you to the crew and the crew's hangout, but yeah, I'll help you out this week. Starting with when and where to get your mail." As she opened her mouth to tell him she knew, because new people always thought they knew, he shook his head, lips tilted in a smirk.

"I promise, you have no idea. Night." And with one final wave, he was returning to his own room.

-

As the weekend rolled around again, Sami inviting him out to a new bar that had opened the previous week, Seth couldn't deny the nerves coursing through his body. For one, he was nervous about running into Dean, only this time with Renee tagging along. And the other thing being he was nervous about introducing Cathy to all his friends, especially Sami Zayn. His ginger friend was highly critical when it came to people invited into their group. Like when Seth had tried to bring his coworker, a somewhat pretentious but otherwise hilarious and fun guy named Mike, Sami had treated him as coldly as possible and afterward told Seth to leave that friendship for work.

He was sure they would love her, but still, he worried.

When he knocked on her door, rubbing his sweaty palms on his tight jeans, he felt a little like he was about to take someone out on a date. Quickly pushing that thought aside as the door opened, he forced a smile to hopefully hide the nerves he felt and whistled in approval.

"You've definitely changed, Miss Kelley. What happened to the colorful sweaters and jeans?" She giggled at him, punching his arm before turning to close the door. Though he was just teasing, he was actually kind of curious. Back in college, she had worn nothing but pastel sweaters and dark jeans with those wide legs. 

Now she wore tight black faux leather pants, well-worn red band t-shirt tucked into the waistband, and heeled boots so tall, he wondered how she didn't break her ankles in them. She had a jacket draped over her arm, keys in hand, and a necklace dangling from around her neck. It was such a stark difference, between the past and now, and he wondered if he seemed as different to her.

"Are we going, or are you hoping to catch a fly in your mouth as a pre-drinking protein snack?" He blinked, clearing his throat and laughing in embarrassment. 

"Sorry. Yeah, let's go. And I'll have you know, flies hardly have enough protein." 

-

The club was much nicer than the last one they'd gone to, where Seth had run into Dean, and he nervously fidgeted in his skinny jeans and metal band t-shirt, wishing Sami had at least warned him there might be a dress code at this new place. When he spotted the ginger, who was talking wildly to Kevin Owens and a couple of their other friends, he couldn't help but feel annoyed when he noticed they were all dressed a lot nicer than he was. 

"Seth! Hey! Glad you could ma- Who's your friend?" In his annoyance, he had stomped over to his friend, ready to lecture him on telling people when there might be a dress code so they could dress correctly, and had forgotten someone was with him, standing behind him and watching everyone nervously. He turned to her suddenly, his mind blanking. When an awkward silence hung over them for a moment too long, she reached past him, hand extended, and smiled.

"Cathy Kelley. I'm a friend of Seth's. And you are?" Once she was introduced to everyone, Tyler especially falling over himself to introduce himself and shake her hand, she turned to him.

"You didn't tell me this place had a dress code. We're going to stick out like sore thumbs...if they even let us in." Seth grumbled, shooting a glare to Sami, who suddenly looked a little guilty.

"That's because I had no idea there _was_ a dress code. My best friend, Sami, didn't mention that in the invite." The ginger rubbed the nape of his neck.

"Yeah, um, I thought maybe you knew? It's been open for a week now. Figured you'd at least checked it out." Seth pinched his nose, trying to contain the annoyance bubbling up again. 

"Is this one of those places that won't let us in for wearing what we are, or will we get in? Because if they won't even let us in, we won't bother waiting in line." Sami shrugged, turning to ask Kevin, who then asked Tyler, who then asked Johnny, who then shrugged before looking back down at his phone. Seth really felt like punching someone, but instead just took a deep breath and directed one of the nastiest glares he could conjure up at Sami.

Once at the door, the bouncer took one look at him and Cathy and shook his head. Seth freaking _knew_ that was going to happen, and they had wasted an hour waiting to get in. Anger boiled up again and was so close to making a scene right there, but Cathy quickly pulled him aside and looked around.

"It's not too late. We can just go somewhere else and hang out. This can be part of that tour of the city we talked about." Seth didn't feel any better about the situation, but he couldn't really argue with her either. Besides, it might be fun to hang out, just the two of them. They had a lot to catch up on, after all.

"Okay. We can go to Mortar & Brick. It's just down the street, and it's a nice place. The food there is pretty great, too." Back in his car, he pulled out of the lot, already rehearsing the speech he was definitely giving Sami the next time he saw him. Cathy, surprisingly, looked extremely relieved. He shot her a curious look, and she laughed.

"I'm sorry. It's just, I was kind of nervous about hanging out with your friends all night, and now I don't have to. I'm kind of okay with the change in plans." Sami would still have to watch his back, but he was glad she wouldn't have to be uncomfortable all night. And Mortar & Brick was a really nice place; casual and friendly. Perfect for an evening of catching up and reminiscing.

-

It turned out to be the best night Seth had in a while. The place was full, but not crowded, the bartender was a friend of his, so the drinks were discounted, and Cathy was reminding him of all the crazy shit he put them through back in school. The game was on the television, the food was as delicious as he had promised, and the alcohol burned in just the right way.

“Oh my gosh! Deano!” Seth froze, fruity drink Cathy was making him try nearly to his lips, as his friend stood up to greet the man still haunting Seth's dreams at night. And sometimes thoughts during the day, when he had nothing better to do than sit in front of the television and remember what it was like to have his ex there.

“Cathy! Long time no see, huh?” The pair embraced, Cathy suddenly pulling back and shooting Seth a sheepish look. He waved her concerned gaze off, keeping his eyes on his drink in hopes that Dean would just go away. 

Then he heard girlish giggling, and it wasn't from Cathy.

“Oh my gosh! Cathy Kelley! What are you doing in these parts? I thought you were big shotting it in LA or something out west!” Seth glanced up, just able to catch the peroxide blonde head on Dean's other side. He tried not to flinch at the sound of her voice, but he was only a man. And he was still a hurting one at that.

“Oh, you know, a little girl with big dreams. I came back to settle myself a little bit. Plus, I never realized how expensive it was out there! Here, I can save up some money and hang with old friends.” She sat down across from Seth again, sipping her drink prettily and doing her best to keep the attention directed on her. Of course it didn't work, Seth knowing for certain Dean had spotted him long before.

“Oh, hey Seth. Didn't notice you here.” He sighed internally, clearing his throat and straightening his spine to meet Dean's eyes head on. He wasn't going to be the awkward injured ex who acted like a kicked puppy every time his ex came around. Last time had been so embarrassing, but this time he had a better idea of how to handle Dean.

It helped that Cathy was there, smiling encouragingly at him. 

“Hey, Dean. Renee. Nice seeing you guys.” The words barely choked their way out of his throat, but he managed to keep his tone as pleasant as was possible when your ex and his adorable little girlfriend, both holding glasses with amber liquid and baskets of fried food that was starting to turn Seth's stomach, came out of nowhere and were acting like it was the greatest thing ever finding Seth and Cathy in the bar. Renee, at least, had the decency to look slightly uncomfortable as she looked between Seth and Dean, lips in a tight smile and glass swirling in her hand.

“Um, Dean. Let's get back to our table. Game night is going to start in a minute. Nice seeing you again, Cathy. Seth.” And before anyone could say another word, she dragged the rugged man across the room.

“Game night?” Cathy gave him an inquisitive look, sipping on her drink as she waited. It took a few seconds for Seth brain to connect the wires again, but once he snapped back to the present, he smiled and picked up a mozzarella stick.

“Every night, Mortar & Brick hosts a themed trivia game night. It looks like tonight is 80's movies. So the questions would be about different 80's movies and stuff like that. There are prizes, usually discounted or free food, but it's also just fun to do with friends. My group is pretty good at it actually, but those assholes are too busy being pretentious at that bar.” Cathy looked thoughtful for a minute, then grabbed his hand and grinned.

“Let's go kick some ass, Seth. We were the trivia champions back in college.” He rolled his eyes.

“Yeah, in _Biology class_. Not in 80's movie trivia.” She rolled her eyes at him in return and reached across the table to punch him.

“Shut up. Let's go win that prize. Free food sounds great!” And though he knew he'd probably regret it, he stood, her hand still holding his, and let her drag him over to the side of the bar where the game was being hosted.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, our second run-in with Dean (this time with Renee) went quite a bit smoother. Poor Seth, but at least this time he had a far less intoxicated friend to help out. I hope you liked it, and I'm excited to see where this game leads. Perhaps some competition between our pairs? Maybe an awkward team composed of our couples? Who knows!


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In the heat of battle, grudges can be forgotten and old hurts abandoned to defeat a common enemy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so glad everyone is enjoying the story so far! I've never written Ambrollins (I'm more of a Rolleigns girl myself), so I wasn't sure if it would work out. So far, I like how the story is turning out, and hopefully, you do too!
> 
> Thank you guys for encouraging me to keep going on this one, as well as my other chaptered pieces. It's tough sometimes, especially if you hit writers block, but seeing encouraging comments always pushes me to get something down, even if it sucks, so that I can get juices flowing again.
> 
> Anyway, enough of that. Let's get to the story!! <3

Seth knew the second he crossed over to the trivia side of the bar that there would be trouble. Though they sat as far from Dean and Renee as they could, Seth's eyes couldn't stop trailing over to where they were sat, talking excitedly to each other and holding hands, and his fists clenched from where they sat on the table. Cathy didn't mention the awkward confrontation with Dean, nor did she say anything about the way he was grumbling to himself and jiggling his leg under the table, instead focusing on the basket of peanuts on the table and looking around in wonder.

“I'm so excited! I bet we'll _smoke_ the competition! Get ready to eat your weight in chicken wings, Sethie!” Seth blinked and flickered his gaze over to Cathy, nodding absently even though he hadn't really heard her words. She slapped his arm lightly, finally gaining his full attention as he arched a brow at her and rubbed the spot where she had slapped him.

“What?” Cathy rolled her eyes.

“You're not listening to me! I said do you think we should order something to eat, or should we wait till we win?” Seth snorted, picking up a peanut out of the basket and cracking it between his thumb and pointer finger. 

“I think you have a _lot_ of confidence for someone who can't name a single movie made in the 80's. There's a 24-hour burger place we can hit after this. Just in case.” Cathy threw peanut shells at him, both of them giggling until a shadow fell over them. Seth looked up, still smiling, and nearly choked on his own breath when his eyes met Dean's amused ones.

“They said we need teams of four. Renee suggested hanging out with you guys. Is that cool, or are we interrupting something.” Seth nearly missed it in his utter shock at having to see and communicate with Dean a second time in one night, but there was a slight edge to Dean's voice. He kept cutting eyes at Cathy, who was laughing at something Renee was saying, and looked about ready to burst. Though, to be fair, Dean always looked ready to burst. Like he might swing on someone any second.

“It's fine, Deano. You can join us. We must have missed the announcement.” Renee sat next to Cathy, continuing on with whatever she had been saying, and Dean squeezed in next to Seth. The discomfort he felt must have been pretty obvious because after only a second, Dean was moving as far away as possible in the seat and grumbling at the table. Silence hung around them even as the girls talked and giggled with each other, Seth praying that the game started soon so they could get on with the night, get out of the bar, and hopefully never run into Dean and Renee ever again.

“Listen up, folks! It's time to start. If you haven't found your group of four yet, come up here so we can help you get sorted. Remember, the winning group all receive free bottomless wings for the next visit! Tonight's topic is 80's Movie Trivia. Good luck!!” A waiter passed around answer sheets and pens for each group while the lady on stage sorted the loners into groups of four so the game could proceed. Renee was scrolling on her phone desperately, while Cathy drummed her fingers on the table. Seth looked over to Dean quickly, not surprised to find he was staring blankly at the wall over Renee's head. He was never one to share what he was feeling or thinking.

“If everyone is ready, here is question number one! Remember to write down your answers onto the answer sheet. Only one answer per question! The question is: 'In the Breakfast Club, John Bender calls Brian a "Neo-Maxi Zoom" blank'. The choices are 'nerd', 'dork', 'dweebie', or 'dodo'. I'll give you two minutes to discuss and write them down.” Seth couldn't for the life of him remember anything about the Breakfast Club, so he turned frantically to Cathy, who was smacking the table excitedly. Renee and Cathy both answered “Dweebie!” in synch, Dean snatching up the purple pen and scribbled something that was probably supposed to resemble 'dweebie'.

Seth couldn't be sure because the letters were all scratched together, looking more like “deobe” to him. Then again, his handwriting wasn't any better. Seth's mom always complained about how hard it was to read anything Seth wrote by hand. It was something he and Dean used to laugh about all the time because when either one made a list or wrote a note for the other one, it was like trying to crack a code.

The game went on like that for twenty minutes, Seth and Dean slowly getting more involved as time passed. Cathy was hopeless with 80's movie trivia, looking around the table at nearly every single question. Renee, on the other hand, turned out to be some kind of whiz with it, triumphantly shouting answers seconds after the question was asked. Dean became more animated when Renee and Cathy both got stuck on the question about Lost Boys, hitting the table and shouting the answer over and over until Seth finally wrote it down as the girls bickered. 

Apparently, Dean also knew quite a bit about 80's movies, and Seth hadn't seen him so excited over anything in forever. Seth suggested for Cathy to write down the rest of the answers since she was pretty clueless, the rest of them raining down answers on her and breaking out into arguments when they didn't agree.

“You've _got_ to be kidding me, Ambrose! I specifically remember a character named Cobra in Top Gun! Ask anyone who watched it!” Dean scowled at him and rolled his eyes.

“You also thought the mouse at Chuck E. Cheese was named 'Chuckles' for some reason. Names are not your forte, Seth.” Renee giggled from across the table, but Seth and Dean were locked in a competitive standoff. 

“The answer is Goose. Who the hell even goes by that name?” Dean slammed his hand down.

“Nick Bradshaw! He went by Goose in the movie! Nick 'Goose' Bradshaw! I thought you were obsessed that movie?” Seth paused, suddenly uncertain, giving Dean the chance to snatch up a blue pen and scribbling 'Cobra' on the line, smirking at Seth when he made an indignant sound.

“Damn you, Ambrose. If it's wrong I'm going to punch your face in.” Finally, the game ended with a rather challenging question that had the whole table shouting answers, all different of course, Seth standing above them all as if that somehow make them listen to him. Other tables were staring at them, some people shaking their heads, but Seth didn't mind. He was actually having fun with his friends, Dean included, and it was really nice.

Minus the infuriating way none of them seemed to think he knew a damn thing about movies, his answers being ignored 80% of the time.

“Okay, but have you even _seen_ Caddyshack? Because I did and none of those people are in it. Renee, back me up here.” Renee looked between them and shrugged, keeping out of the disagreement like a pro. Seth glared at Dean another second longer before grumbling to himself and motioning for Cathy to write down Dean's answer.

Once the papers were collected, a waitress came by their table asking if they wanted refills or if they wanted to order food, but they were too busy watching the trivia girl go over the pages with a few friends on stage, discarding papers ever few seconds until there were just two left. The waitress eventually walked away, and Seth looked down at his glass to make sure he didn't need a drink refill.

“We have come up with two teams with perfect scores, so we will settle this in a sudden death face-off between the two teams. The first one to answer the question correctly will win the prize. Will the teams of Carrie, Jonathan, Patrick, and Henry, and Seth, Renee, Cathy, and Dean please come up.” Seth rose, ignoring the smirk Dean was wearing since most of the answers were ones he had said. Damn him and his stupid random trivia knowledge.

“Okay, here's the question: 'Norman Dale was the name of the coach in what 1980's sports movie?' Was it 'Bull Durham', 'Vision Quest', 'Hoosiers', or 'Eight Men Out'?” Before Seth could even attempt to try and remember, Cathy shouted out “Hoosiers”, smiling triumphantly while everyone, including the other team, glared at her. Seth crossed everything he had that she hadn't just made an ass of herself in front of everyone.

“That's correct! Congratulations, you guys will get free bottomless wings for your next visit. Let me just write down your full names and copy your I.D.s and then you can go back to your seats.” Seth took his out, holding his hand out for Cathy's, and handed them over.

“That was a great call, Cathy!” Seth turned and smiled at Cathy, who was absolutely beaming with pride. Considering she hadn't been able to answer a single question during the competition, it was surprising how quickly she had been able to answer.

“I watched mostly sports movies as a kid. I've seen 'Hoosiers' a million times.” The trivia girl brought the cards back, thanked them for playing, and disappeared back into some office. Seth glanced at the time on his phone. It was getting pretty late, and he actually had work the next day to make up for some malfunction in the copy room. Cathy was still having a lot of fun, though, and it was nice being able to hang out with Dean without feeling like he was going to die.

When Sami heard he'd played trivia with Dean, though, he was going to read him the riot act.

“Hey it was fun, but we have to head out. Renee has some things to do early tomorrow. Tell your girlfriend thanks for the free wings.” Seth jerked back a little at Dean's words, but he was gone before Seth could even draw a breath. Cathy was back by his side, looking around in confusion.

“Where did they go?” Seth blinked at her, his mind totally blank. Dean thought Cathy was his girlfriend? Why would he think that? And why had he said it like _that_? 

Most importantly, why did Seth even freaking care? Dean had Renee, had broken Seth's heart into a million tiny sharp pieces he still suffered from every day. He could go fuck himself for real. 

“They had to turn in, and I just remembered I did too. I have to go into the office tomorrow. I'm sorry we can't stay out longer.” Cathy waved him off, still smiling up at him as if everything was perfectly fine. Which it totally was, you know, mostly.

Seth was just done being Dean's punching bag, the one who suffered the most abuse while Dean got to parade around like a heartless asshole who enjoyed hurting people. Seth was done being stuck on something that was very clearly over. He was done not being able to live his life without worrying about his ex-boyfriend. He was done being confused and insecure.

Sami would be so proud of his progress. Maybe he wouldn't kill him for playing trivia with his ex-boyfriend.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's to Seth hopefully getting his act together.


End file.
